Windmere

Windmere-Durable Holdings Inc. of Miami Lakes has agreed to buy Black & Decker's North and Latin American household products division for $315 million, the companies announced Monday. The acquisition will unite ``Black & Decker's leading brand name and reputation for innovation and quality and Windmere's unparalleled manufacturing capabilities,'' said Windmere Chief Executive Officer David M. Friedson. The deal does not include Brazil. The division makes and sells small household appliances.

BROOKSVILLE - A woman reported that she was sexually battered Friday by a man who picked her up after her vehicle broke down at the Heritage Best Western, the Marion County Sheriff's Office reported.The 33-year-old victim was walking down Windmere Road after the car broke down, and the suspect gave her a ride. She said she was taken to a remote area, where he repeatedly struck her and raped her.Larry Karl, a spokesman for the Sheriff's Office, said the victim said the suspect drove off after the rape and she was able to catch a ride with a trucker, who took her to Ocala.

A year ago, Windmere Corp. was full of promise. Sales, profits and its stock price were rising. The manufacturer's innovative products, including hair crimpers and lint removers, were hot.Officials at Windmere's Miami Lakes headquarters and stock analysts predicted that the company's financial results and stock value would continue showing spectacular gains. Windmere's blow dryers , curling irons and other grooming products, made inexpensively in China, were popular with U.S. consumers.By June, however, circumstances beyond Windmere's control started to deflate all expectations.

Windmere-Durable Holdings Inc. of Miami Lakes has agreed to buy Black & Decker's North and Latin American household products division for $315 million, the companies announced Monday. The acquisition will unite ``Black & Decker's leading brand name and reputation for innovation and quality and Windmere's unparalleled manufacturing capabilities,'' said Windmere Chief Executive Officer David M. Friedson. The deal does not include Brazil. The division makes and sells small household appliances.

By Suzy Hagstrom of the Sentinel staff and By Suzy Hagstrom of The Sentinel Staff, March 13, 1989

Many of the 150 money managers who attended Raymond, James & Associates Inc.'s annual investment conference last week were asking the same question: Can the price of Windmere Corp.'s stock continue to rise?For the past two years, Windmere, a Miami Lakes manufacturer of small appliances, has been a stock picker's dream come true.Windmere's stock price was around $6 to $7 a share in 1987, when the company made its first presentation at a Raymond, James conference. A year later, the price had risen to about $17 a share.

After being in the beauty business for decades, Windmere Corp. finally has attracted some attention.In a recent research report, stock analyst Bert Boksen of Raymond, James & Associates Inc., a regional brokerage in St. Petersburg, recommends that investors consider buying the stock of Windmere. Raymond, James also makes a market buying and selling the company's stock.Windmere, which is based in Hialeah, makes and sells household appliances and beauty aids. Sears, Roebuck & Co. Inc., J.C. Penney Co. Inc. and Eckerd Drug Stores are among major retailers that sell Windmere's products, including hair dryers, curling irons, shavers, fans and air cleansers.

A two-year legal battle between tiny Hialeah-based Windmere Corp. and giant North American Phillips, maker of Norelco shavers, ended in a draw this week when both companies failed to win their case. Windmere, manufacturer and distributor of personal-care products, said U.S. District Judge Stanley Marcus ruled that North American did not violate antitrust laws in the rotary shaver market. Marcus' ruling came just after a federal jury ruled that Windmere unintentionally violated a shaver patent held by North American.

-- OVER-THE-COUNTER. Windmere Corp. may be for speculative investors who want to round out their portfolios with the stock of a small, Florida-based company, according to The Speculator, a financial newsletter based in Jersey City, N.J.Windmere, which is based in Hialeah, makes products such as hair dryers, curling irons, electric shavers, electric fans, shampoos and other hair-care products. The company makes many of the products through joint ventures with companies in Hong Kong.About one-third of Windmere's revenue comes from products that are sold to professionals through 100 company owned beauty-supply stores.

DBA SYSTEMS Inc. of Melbourne posted a first-quarter profit of $414,000 on sales of $8.9 million, up from $77,000 in profit on sales of $7.9 million in the year-earlier period, the company said Wednesday. New orders and contract awards boosted DBA's performance, officials said. The defense contractor makes electrooptical and optical components for military weaponry. DBA has 500 employees, including 300 in Melbourne and 67 in Kissimmee.THRIFTSTHE PARENT company of Glendale Federal Bank - a California savings and loan with four offices in Central Florida - Wednesday reported a profit of $17.1 million for the first quarter of its 1992 fiscal year.

WINDMERE CORP. said Thursday that its profit declined to $932,700 in the first quarter, compared with profit of $4.8 million in the same period a year earlier. Sales in the period were $29.4 million, compared with sales of $45.3 million in the same period last year. Windmere attributes most of its loss in the first quarter to lower gross profit margins at the company's manufacturing operations in Hong Kong and the People's Republic of China. The company, based in Miami, makes and sells hair dryers, curling irons and kitchen appliances.

Retailing and food-service veteran Albert DiMarco was appointed president and chief executive officer of Clearwater-based Checkers Drive-In Restaurants Inc. DiMarco has been working as a consultant with the fast-food chain and previously was president of Windmere Development Corp., Nutri/System Inc. and Warnaco's Chaps by Ralph Lauren. Richard Postle, Checkers' outgoing president and chief operating officer, is leaving to become president of St. Louis Bread Co., a 42-store bakery-cafe owned by Boston-based Au Bon Pain Co.

ANTHONY JOHN PASKO SR., 70, 5801 N. Banana River Blvd., Cape Canaveral, died Saturday, July 9. Mr. Pasko was an assembly worker for General Motors, Linden, N.J. Born in Westfield, Mass., he moved to Central Florida in 1986. He was a member of Church of Our Saviour Catholic Church, Cocoa Beach. He was a Navy veteran of World War II. Survivors: daughters, Margaret Giglio, Navesink, N.J., Mary Ann Windmere, Port Monmouth, N.J., Rose Scritchfield, West Haverstraw, N.Y.; sons, Richard, Cocoa Beach, Anthony, Port Monmouth, N.J.; 11 grandchildren.

Stocks of Florida interest:WINN-DIXIENew York Exchange (Symbol: WIN)52-week range: $45.50-67.75Friday's close: $46''With 1,170 supermarkets, Jacksonville, Fla.-based Winn-Dixie is the fifth-largest grocery chain in the country and the largest in the Sun Belt. By the end of this year, the firm will have remodeled or expanded 90 stores and opened 70 new ones.''In July, Winn-Dixie increased its dividend for the 50th consecutive year; we know of no other company listed on the New York Stock Exchange with such a record.

New York Exchange (Symbol: WND)52-week range: $3.625-$8.125Thursday's close: $6.375''Windmere is a leading maker and distributor of personal-care and home products such as hair dryers and curling irons. As a result of low manufacturing costs in China, Windmere saw revenues rise from $10 million in 1976 to $193 million in 1988. The recession, however, led to losses in 1990 and 1991; Windmere fell from a high of $29 to $2.50. . . . Windmere began a turnaround in 1992, with sales for the year rising 24 percent to $175 million.

L. LURIA & SON INC., Miami Lakes. An investment group led by Tweedy Browne Co. L.P. cut its stake in L. Luria & Son Inc., a catalog showroom, by 1.8 percent and now holds 5.74 percent, or 203,790 common shares. The group sold 62,200 shares on Nov. 27.CATALINA LIGHTING INC., Miami. A group including Windmere Corp., a Miami Lakes supplier of personal care products, cut its stake in Catalina Lighting Inc. and no longer holds a stake in the marketer of ceiling fans and lights. Windmere sold 309,724 common shares Nov. 25 for $5.38 each.

DBA SYSTEMS Inc. of Melbourne posted a first-quarter profit of $414,000 on sales of $8.9 million, up from $77,000 in profit on sales of $7.9 million in the year-earlier period, the company said Wednesday. New orders and contract awards boosted DBA's performance, officials said. The defense contractor makes electrooptical and optical components for military weaponry. DBA has 500 employees, including 300 in Melbourne and 67 in Kissimmee.THRIFTSTHE PARENT company of Glendale Federal Bank - a California savings and loan with four offices in Central Florida - Wednesday reported a profit of $17.1 million for the first quarter of its 1992 fiscal year.

WILDA DORIS GIBSON, 76, 2331 Windmere Court, Marietta, Ga., died Wednesday. Born in Norwood, Ga., she moved to Marietta from Casselberry in 1987. She was a retired registered nurse. She was a member of the First Baptist Church of Altamonte Springs. Survivors: daughters, Gail Marshall, Marietta, Shirley Durden, Orlando; son, Hubert Daniel, Atlanta; nine grandchildren; six great-grandchildren. Baldwin-Fairchild Funeral Home, Forest City.

ARE YOU longing for yet another personal hygiene gadget? You may want to clear a space in the bathroom for the latest from Windmere, a Miami Lakes manufacturer of personal care products and small appliances. The company has introduced a home plaque removal system called Plak Trac. The system features an innovatively designed brush head with two counterrotating pods of bristle tufts, the company says. The action of the brush helps to remove plaque from tooth surfaces, between the teeth and under the gumline, Windmere says.

SMITHKLINE BEECHAM PLC, the Anglo-American health and household products company, said Wednesday its fourth-quarter profit soared 71 percent to $301 million from $176 million in the same period a year earlier. Sales rose 1 percent to $2.17 billion from $2.18 billion a year earlier. SmithKline, based in London, makes such products as Tums antacid, Aquafresh toothpaste, Dyazide blood pressure medicine and dairy and swine vaccines.ENTERTAINMENTGENERAL CINEMA CORP. Wednesday reported a 43 percent increase in profit during its fiscal first quarter, helped by improved business at its movie theaters.